When it comes to vegetable nutrition, Campbell understands the barriers to eating vegetables that must be overcome in order to narrow the “vegetable gap” that exists between people’s daily consumption and the recommended intake. According to consumer research, the biggest barriers include spoilage (51 percent), availability (49 percent), convenience (42 percent), and time (33 percent).¹

To address these issues, Campbell worked with researchers at the University of California- Davis to better understand if drinking vegetable juice could be a simple dietary change to help boost the intake of vegetables.²

In the 12-week study, 90 healthy men and women received behavioral and dietary counseling on ways to increase vegetable intake to meet vegetable recommendations, which are 2½ cups per day for a 2,000-calorie diet. The participants were instructed to consume a calorie-appropriate Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, and randomized to either receive one or two servings of vegetable juice daily (8 or 16 ounces of V8^® 100% Vegetable juice) or no juice at all.

This research confirmed that vegetable juice is not only a convenient option, but also a tasty way to help people close their “vegetable gap.” Key findings include:

• Participants who received both the vegetable juice and counseling were far more likely to meet vegetable intake recommendations than those who received counseling alone and no juice.
• Less than a quarter of those who received counseling alone and no juice met vegetable intake recommendations.
• The majority of those drinking the juice reported that they enjoyed the taste, felt they were doing “something good” by drinking it, were satisfied they had a diet that provided the “right vitamins and minerals,” and were pleased with the ease of getting vegetables into their diets.³

Want to eat more vegetables and manage your weight? Visit the V8^® Healthy Weight Plan.